‘We will be at your doorsteps very soon’
Giving ‘advance notice’, Holness urges criminals, relatives to give up guns
Published:Saturday | February 5, 2022 | 12:10 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
A day after 13 guns, including 10 high-powered rifles, were seized by cops in Florence Hall, Trelawny, Prime Minister Andrew Holness has appealed to Jamaicans to support the Government’s latest ‘Operation Get Every Illegal Gun’ campaign.
Speaking at the opening of the Andrew’s Mews Recreational Park along Olympic Way in his St Andrew West Central constituency on Friday, Holness said elements of the campaign include new legislation and an incentivised fund with a target of establishing $250 million to significantly increase the rewards for information leading to recovery of illegal firearms.
Three days before the Trelawny operation, Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson had indicated that since the start of the year, 88 illegal guns had been seized across the island.
Yesterday, Holness credited the latest successes to the new strategy.
“There are several key elements to the plan. Some of them are top secret. We won’t say too much about them, except to say that our capacity to detect and recover firearms have considerably improved and you are seeing the results of it already,” Holness said.
He said that the penalty for illegal possession of a firearm will soon be significantly increased as well.
“In a few days, we will take a new Firearms Bill to Parliament, which will create several new offences,” he said.
“Today, I’m appealing to persons who are in possession of illegal weapons to give them up. Give up your illegal weapons using anyone of the information channels that are available,” the prime minister appealed.
He further asked persons to report illegal guns by calling Crime Stop at 311, the police’s Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch at 876-591-5671, the Jamaica Defence Force’s tip line at 876-837-8888 or the police’s 119 emergency number.
“Use those mediums, tell us what you know about the guns. Give up the guns … . I make this sincere and serious appeal to every single Jamaican,” he pleaded.
“People know where the guns are. All you have to do is pick up phone and call, … and you could get anywhere from $250,000 to $500,000 depending on the gun. For many of you, that is an opportunity to leave the area or you can stay there, but it is an opportunity for you to get rid of the criminals out of your community,” he said.
Don’t interfere
Holness urged citizens to be cooperative and not to interfere in police operations.
“When you see the police come, don’t interfere with them. I am seeing too many videos of citizens interfering with the police carrying out their lawful duties. If you interfere with the police in this operation, you, too, will be arrested. Do not interfere with the police carrying out their lawful duties,” Holness warned.
“I am giving advance notice to the country, communities like this community which I represent, because I know you’re going to have people saying ... gi dem a bly. I am giving advance notice!”
He also called on the “girlfriends, the babymothers, the sisters and the mothers who give them (gunmen) cover and protection” to “take careful note that the actions to recover guns so far have been extremely successful, and if you have a gun or are associated with it, we will be at your doorsteps very soon”.
He closed with another appeal to gunmen who say they are only “victims of their circumstances, acting the part, following the script already written for them”, to give up their guns.
“This is mindless and fatalistic and should not be encouraged. Your circumstances must never determine your future and your fate,” he said.